Second Sun
by My Beloved
Summary: This is after Breaking Dawn. Renee has decided to come visit her only child up in Forks while she is on a cruise with Phil to Alaska. While she is there she plans to reveal some news that will forever change their lives.
1. Cryptic

_**A/N: Ok so I know this is long overdue (that's an understatement), but things have been so hectic with school exams, colleges, and my computer conveniently died a couple of weeks ago. So finally here is the first chapter of my next story. This is sometime after Breaking Dawn and the Cullen's still live in Forks. Hope you all enjoy and don't forget to review (you can even yell at me for taking so long if you want to). =)**_

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BPOV:

I run my fingers through the honey curls that hang down Nessie's back. She likes it when I play with her hair so I always take my time. Nessie leans back against me and hangs her head backwards so she can give me an upside-down smile. Grabbing one of her loose curls I pull it strait in front of her face. Her eyes cross as she follows my fingertips to the very end of the strand. I let go and it bounces happily back into shape. Nessie bursts into a fit of giggles before bringing her head upright so that I can continue.

With a family as big as ours we don't get a lot of quiet time to ourselves. This moment, sitting cross-legged on the living room floor with my daughter in my lap as I braid her hair, is one of those rare occasions. Carlisle and Esme are busy working on various jobs outside of the house while Rose and Emmett are traveling through India on another honeymoon. Jasper, well I'm not quiet sure where he is. He just up and disappeared this morning, but Alice isn't worried so neither am I. That leaves Edward, who is quietly sitting beside us at his piano playing soft background music, and Alice, who has been unusually quiet lately.

Edward's fingers hesitate over the keys momentarily, but he picks back up fluidly so as not to draw attention to himself. He must have "heard" something. Before I could think anymore about it Alice anxiously skips down the stairs.

"Jasper is coming home and he's going to want me to meet him in Vancouver," she informs us. Edward eyes her incredulously, but she ignores him and runs over to kiss Renesmee on the top of the forehead and give me a light squeeze goodbye before running out the front door. Since I've become a member or the Cullen family it's come as a relief to me that Alice's strength is no longer seemingly disproportionate to her size.

Edward sighs and turns back to his piano. I'm tired of Edward's cryptic sighs and varying expressions whenever he's around Alice nowadays so I tie off Renemee's braid and join him on the bench. I wait until Nessie closes the back door to question Edward.

"What's going on?" Without missing a beat he turns to me and flashes a lazy crooked smile. Contrary to his attitude when Alice was with us, Edward now exudes such serenity that he would give Jasper a run for his money.

"Well," he says calmly, "Nessie just went out back to look for Jacob, Carlisle is…"

"That's not what I meant and you know it."

"Oh do I?" He raises an eyebrow. "You seem to be blocking me right now so I couldn't be sure." I exhale in exasperation and turn my attention towards the back window. I can hear Edward chuckle softly before returning to his music. If Edward's going to be difficult and play games with me, then he must be hiding something. Two can play that game.

I look at the clock on the cable box in the living and push myself up from the piano bench. Fruitlessly stretching out my legs and back, I walk towards the garage and grab my car keys. I place my hand on the door knob and pause for a fraction of a second.

"The Ferrari," Edward asks right on cue, "You usually like to take my car since it's less ostentatious."

I smile innocently and turn to find him standing only a few feet away. "I do, but, since I'm not going to be in town today, I figured that it would be innocuous." Edward furrows his brow in confusion and I work to keep a strait face. I've gotten better at lying in the past few months. "Besides my car is faster," I add for my own enjoyment.

Edward contemplates this before asking the inevitable question, "Where are you going?"

"Oh didn't I tell you? This morning Alice told me about some visions that were troubling her and she brought up Jasper leaving. She told me that he would ask her to meet him eventually, and asked me to join her shortly after she left." I had kept my face smooth and lied flawlessly. I'd have to pat myself on the back later.

Edward ponders over the validity of my lie looking for holes I guess. The only way he could call my fib would be it he had heard something in Alice's thoughts that contradicts me. I can tell he's choosing every word with care trying not to give too much away in case I am lying, but at the same he wants more information from me just in case I'm not. From both his and Alice's expressions all morning I could tell the she was trying to keep her visions from him while he tried to decipher any glimpses he could get.

Finally his curiosity gets the better of him. "So your mom," he starts cautiously. My muscles freeze and I work to control my breathing thankful that my heart rate can no longer give me away. What happened to Renee?

"Yeah, Renee. What do you think about that?" I drop my eyes to the floor and hope I'm using the right tone for the situation.

"I'm not quite sure what to think. Alice hasn't been very generous with information, but from what I have seen we do have an interesting conflict on our hands," he says giving up little useful information.

I turn his words over in my mind. "Interesting conflict", it must not be too horrible. "I suppose she'd want to talk with me about it first considering Renee is my mom."

"I guess you're right. Well, I hope you guys can get things worked out. If you need any help I'm here for you." He smiles a breathtaking grin and kisses me on the forehead before heading back to his piano.

I turn my back on him and open the door to the garage swearing silently to myself. Jamming the key into the ignition, I rev the engine and pull out of the garage much too fast. Accelerating down the serpentine drive I pull off onto the main road and head towards Vancouver. I'm not planning on actually meeting Alice there, but I have to keep up the façade in case Edward is listening. About six miles beyond the house I pull off on the shoulder and cut the engine. I sit for a few moments in the silence to be sure I wasn't followed. Being overly cautious, I get out and circle the car a few times tasting the air and searching for that familiar scent.

I'm still not completely satisfied with my findings, or lack thereof, but I slide back into my leather seat and grab my cell phone anyway. I speed dial three and wait for Alice to pick up. Before the phone rings even once on my end I hear the familiar voice sing "Hi Bella" from the other end.

"Renee, Alice, what's going on?" I keep my tone even and demanding in hopes that Alice won't try to sidestep my questions.

"Relax Bella, she's fine. In fact she's better then fine." Her voice is smooth like the purr of her Porsche in the background. I have to believe her, why would she lie to me about Renee?

The leather squeaks behind my back as I slouch in my seat. Relief flows through my body; the warmth helps ease my hitched breathing and tensed muscles. "Ok then, why are you having visions about her?" My mind is spinning in a hundred different directions at once. If Alice is seeing Renee, then we must be somewhere near her. Holy crow what will I do? I can feel my control slipping; any human would have fainted by now, but I don't have that luxury.

"Bella I know you're still there, relax. You won't do anything; none of us will," she assures me. I hold my breath because I can't seem to ease the habitual hyperventilating. "Bella please say something."

I suck the air slowly through my clenched teeth. "Where is she," I manage to mutter almost unintelligible.

"She's fine."

"Where?"

"Really Bella there's nothing . . ."

"Alice, where is Renee? Don't make me come up there. I promise you I will and I'll bring Edward with me." I'm tired of Alice's games. Why is she doing this to me, this isn't like her.

"She's in Alaska, Bella, with Phil. They are on a cruise." Alice finally answers my question, but only creating many more to fill its place.

"That's where Jasper went isn't it? You sent him to spy on Renee, but why?"

"Your mom is coming to visit you since she's so close by. I didn't want to worry you yet. I sent Jasper to check on her because some aspects of my visions are unclear. Your mom hasn't committed to making a decision," she explains.

"So we don't know if she's come yet?"

"No she's coming in a couple of days."

"Then what hasn't she decided? What are you hiding Alice?"

Alice struggles for a moment, but she had to have seen this coming. "Bella, it's really not my place to tell. It's very personal and it would be better if she told you herself."

I almost drop the phone as her words process. Renee is coming. She'll want to see me, in person. "Alice there is no way Renee can see me like this. What are we going to do?"

"Bella relax, I have a . . ."

"Oh no, Renesmee! What are we going to do with her? Renee would make the connection immediately."

"Bella," Alice shouts over the phone, "if you will listen to me I was telling you that I have a plan already worked out." She pauses to make sure I'm in control and won't interrupt again. I hadn't even realized that my breathing spiked almost to the point of hyperventilation again.

"Bella, are you alright?" I nod my head in a daze. "You have to answer me, I can't see you." I'm sure she could have "seen" me if she tired, but I comply anyways.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"Ok, we are going to tell Charlie that Renee is coming and ask him to tell her that you are out of town. She may want to come to the house to visit Esme and me anyway so you, Edward, and Nessie can hide out at the cottage. Does that sound good?"

I ponder her plan, and decide that, for all intents and purposes, it is a good idea, but this could be my last chance to see Renee. I had dealt with the pain of my good-byes at the wedding, but now she'll be so close. I've already gotten back so much more of my human life than I ever hoped for, why not Renee too? This avoidance will only make her more persistent; she'll keep coming back until she see me, and the longer it takes, the harder it will be to explain my appearance once we do meet. Why not cut things off now while it's easier.

"Just one day, Alice. Edward and I will come home the day she leaves so it can be short, but I have to see her. I need to end things right," I mutter with conviction.

"Do you understand what that means? Are you willing to take that risk, to put Renee in so much danger? Bella, she's going to ask questions that we can't answer."

"Well, what do you see?" With every moment I become more hopeful that this will work out. We can't expose her and Phil like we did Charlie, but there has to be a way. I'm sure of it now.

"Bella I can't _see_ anything until we make a decision. Listen, I'm already in Vancouver, we can talk about this when I get back and I've had a chance to discuss with Jasper. Think things over and tell Edward what's going on if he hasn't already figured it out, maybe you two can come up with a solution." The line goes dead, but I keep the phone up to my ear longer enough for the dial tone to start buzzing.

My body pulses with anxiety. I finally have the opportunity to see my mom again – a chance I never thought I'd get – but at the same time this opportunity is wrought with possibilities of unfavorable endings.

I throw the phone down into the passenger's seat and accelerate back towards the house. Watching the trees blur passed the car window, I try to clear my mind until I get back home. Talking to Edward will help me put things into perspective, and Carlisle always knows the right thing to do. I slide my car swiftly into its spot at the far end of the garage.

"Nice, I see you finally took the Ferrari out for a spin." I turn around to see Jake admiring my car like he does so often. I can feel the bewilderment plain on my face. How can anyone think of cars when my mom is coming? With my hand still on the knob I stare at Jake whose expression quickly shifts to one of confusion. _He doesn't know yet_, I think to myself and with that all my repressed thoughts flood to the front of my mind almost blinding me.

"Bella are you alright? You look a little out of it."

I shift my attention back to Jake and, without thinking, I point my finger sternly at his chest and say, "Don't you dare strip down in front of my mother," before running into the house.

I find Edward sitting lazily on the couch watching an old black and white movie with Esme.

"Edward we need to talk."

He looks at me mockingly and raises an eyebrow, "So how was your trip to Vancouver?" I ignore his snide sarcasm.

"Renee is coming in a couple of days to see me and we need to figure out what to do. Where's Carlisle?"

Esme jumps from the couch, but doesn't go anywhere. Concern shadows her young face. Edward clenches my hand and pulls me up the stairs to Carlisle's study. The door is open and we find him peering out the back window. His conflicted eyes mirrored in the flawless glass worry me; I'm sure he heard my declaration in the living room.

"What are our options," Edward asks stepping towards his father. Carlisle shakes his head and runs his fingers through his hair. In his centuries of committing to this way of life I'm sure he's never had to deal with, much less think about, the problems I've created for his family.

I sigh, and resolve. "We should just do as Alice advises. Edward and I will hide out at the cottage with Renesmee whenever we need to so that Renee won't see us." I'm determined in my decision, because that is what would be easiest for my family, but I can't keep the disappointment from leaking into my words.

Carlisle finally turns to face me and places his hands on my shoulders. His eyes soften and a confident smile pulls at the corners of his mouth, "You mustn't worry Bella, we will discuss this once Alice returns. You don't have to sacrifice your mother for us; you will see her again. You are her only child after all."

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A/N: Ok so there's chapter one for you. Yeah not much was revealed, but there was a whole lot of set up there. Next chapter Alice and Jasper will return to share what information they have. If you have any thoughts, comments, or suggestions I'd love to hear them. Also be sure to check out the new picture on my profile of "cover" art for this story. I pretty much make all of this up as I go along so if you have any good ideas I may use them in the story. So be sure to review. **_

_**THANK YOU!**_


	2. Plan

_**A/N: I'm really excited that I got so much feed back with this first chapter. It usually takes a few chapters to get things going, but you guys picked right up. Thank you! So I decided I would get right on this next chapter, but work has been taking up much of my "free" time and I'm beta reading a couple stories (one by CuRoSiTy14 the other by **__**Hawkins, both great writers so check them out) **__**as well. But it's here now, so enjoy.

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Recap:

If you remember what's going on disregard this. So, Alice "saw" Renee coming for a visit to Forks and Bella is beside herself with worry. She wants to see her mom, but doesn't want to put her in any danger or face the many questions that will come. Bella also knows that Alice is hiding some information about her mother. Now they are waiting for Alice and Jasper to return from Alaska to discuss what the plan is.

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BPOV:

Time, for an immortal, passes without notice. It's omnipresent like the air we breathe and harbors just as little appreciation. The rising and setting of the sun are the only markers we have of its passage. None of us lives on a schedule defined by time – the only exception would be Renesmee since she sleeps and eats regularly – but there are times when each moment, each insignificant second adds another drop of anxiety into an overflowing bucket of impatience. This would have been one of those times.

I tapped my fingers on the desk anxiously making indents in the wood with my lack of attention. Edward grabbed my hand and pulled me into his chest. He slid his finger under my chin and pulled my face up to look at my eyes. I couldn't see him though; I couldn't see anything. My mind was clouded with paranoia.

"Alice will be here soon enough," he assured me, "We have plenty of time to work things out." I understood his words and the truth they held, but that did little to ease my mental state.

I turned my head away and slid out of his hold. The back window seemed like a good place to escape to. Leaning my head against the glass I closed my eyes and concentrated on the sounds of the surrounding forest. I couldn't lie to myself though; I knew what I was truly listening for.

Two burning hands clasped my shoulders in an attempt to massage out some of the tension residing in them. The unexpected heat made me gasp for air. That's when I realized that I had been holding my breath; no wonder I hadn't smelled Jake approach.

I peeked over my shoulders – stiff as ever – to see my once personal sun smiling behind me. His radiance could not penetrate through my barrier of clouds. I sighed and turned back to my window.

"Please Bella," Jake said placing his chin on top of my head, "Everything will work out fine. Charlie worked out ok, your mom can too. Who ever said you can't have everything? You're doing a pretty good job of it so far." Jake had never been my most sentimental, supportive friend so I couldn't help but to smile at his absurd optimism.

"My life may be centered on mythology, but this isn't a fairytale. Bad things can happen; people can get hurt. One slip up and Renee and Phil could jump to the top of the Volturi hit list." I fell back, mentally exhausted, onto the soft, fiery chest of my best friend. "I won't let that happen," I whispered.

I heard a soft "may I?" and then Jake's arms were replaced by Edward's. Looking into his warm topaz eyes I collapsed limp against him and began to sob. "I. Can't. Let. That. Happen." My voice was a garble of indiscernible sounds. I hated to have my family see me at my most vulnerable, my strength and confidence shattered.

Edward just stood there cradling my broken figure squeezing me tighter whenever my breathing hiked. Jake stayed by my side as well rubbing my back.

"Mommy?" A tug on the hem of my shirt. If anything, I had to keep my composure for my daughter. I sucked in a ragged breath and bent over to pick up Renesmee. She buried her face in my neck letting my hair fall over her. Tiny warm fingers rubbed against the side of my cheek, and she peered up at me with her deep brown eyes, glassy with unshed tears. My vision was suddenly blurred and all I could see was me a few moments ago in shambles. Worry and concern were ubiquitous. The mood changed as does the vision. The atmosphere was filled with hope as she imagined Renee, but the picture was incomplete since she'd only seen the photographs I'd shown to her.

"You can't meet her," I said placing my forehead against hers, "She's not like Charlie."

Renesmee simply nodded and smiled up at me with her inherited crooked grin. I couldn't help but to smile back at her. With her hand still on my cheek Renesmee showed me the image of Renee again with the same optimism as before. I furrowed my brow in confusion not understanding what she wants me to see.

"You," she finally said. I laughed humorlessly, but kept my warm outward appearance as my chest tightened.

"No honey, I don't think that's the best idea." I thought back to Alice's vision, the conviction I'd had for seeing my mother, and the hundreds of questions and persistence I knew would come if I didn't see Renee then. I looked back at Renesmee and sighed, "But I don't think we have a choice."

Edward walked up behind me and wrapped his arms around the two of us as he kissed the bare skin of my neck. We stood like that for a moment, each lost in our own thoughts, before Edward put his lips to me ear and whispered, "She's pulling up now."

My head snapped up and I ran towards the back door with Renesmee still securely in my arms. I didn't know how I could have gotten so distracted that I didn't hear her car. My muscles were wound so tense that I didn't notice Renesmee struggling to free herself from my iron grasp until Jake pulled her out of my arms.

Alice's scent got stronger as she got closer and closer to the door, but then she stopped. "Bella please go sit on the couch. I don't want to get mauled walking through my own front door," Alice called from outside.

I turned on my heels and huffed impatiently to the couch. Once seated next to Carlisle I shouted for Alice and Jasper to "come in already".

As Alice and Jasper stepped across the threshold Alice glared at me before I could make my move to get up. "I know you want to see your mother, and I also know that you'd be willing to give up anything if you thought it was better for everyone else. With that, we're not giving you a choice." Alice's light singing voice didn't match the threats she was making.

"Do you really think that will work?" Edward leaned over the back of the couch to put his hand on my shoulders. I looked up at him questioningly; he was scrutinizing Alice's visions. Silence persisted as Edward and Alice conversed silently across the room. The tension made me anxious and drew my patience thin.

Finally Carlisle stood, "Please, Alice, will you share your visions with us? We still don't know the full story," he requested.

Alice turned away from Edward and nodded. I sat forward, eager to finally make some progress. "Renee and Phil are on a cruise around Alaska at this moment. In the weeks leading up to the trip Renee was very indecisive about stopping in for a visit afterward since she's so close by. Well, she finally made her decision yesterday, but that brought up another conflict that I hadn't seen coming." I was almost to my feet when Alice turned to me and shook her head. My muscles loosened and I felt limp as I slumped against the sofa cushions. Jasper walked to Alice and placed his arm around her shoulders and she nodded thankfully to him without taking her eyes off me. He couldn't have been anymore obvious if he'd opened his mouth and physically told me to relax.

The erratic emotions already raging through my body warred with Jasper's attempts at relaxation. The effect made my head swim, but my body complied. For that I was thankful. I took a deep breath and clasped my hands in my lap waiting for Alice to continue.

"Anyway," she continued, "Once I could see the situation in its entirety I sent Jasper up to Alaska to check on Renee's . . . condition. Everything is fine so we met up and discussed a plan which I'm going to explain to you all now." Alice stared intently at me for a fraction of a second either waiting for an objection or looking to the future.

I kept my mouth shut and remained motionless letting Jasper's relaxation sink in.

"Ok," Alice continued, "since Bella has done so much for us and since she is a part of this family, I was thinking that there must be a way that we could let her see her mother and get a proper good-bye."

My breath caught in my throat at the thought of saying a permanent good-bye to Renee. I gasped for air. All eyes darted in my direction and each conveyed varying mixtures of concern, worry, and confusion. Alice, Edward and Esme opened their mouths to offer comfort in any way that they could, but I help up a finger to halt their fruitless attempts.

I couldn't ignore the scrutinizing stares to I closed my eyes and took deep even breaths to try and clear my head. It had worked while I was still human and I hoped that my body would recognize my attempts at relaxation. Even though my eyes were closed I could still feel my family watching me. Jasper was concentrating solely on calming me down. I'd never felt the effects of Jasper's full power until then. The feeling was strangely numbing.

"I'm fine," I finally mumbled as I nodded apologetically to Alice. She smiled empathetically, "You knew you'd have to eventually," I sighed, but said no more.

"Back to Renee, Jasper and I came up with a plan." Jasper raised an eyebrow at Alice. "Ok so I came up with it, but that's beside the point. Renee is only planning to stay here for a few days. We will have Charlie tell her that Bella and Edward aren't coming back to town until the day she leaves. That way, Bella, you can still see your mom, but she'll be rushing to catch her plane and won't be able to spend too much time with us to put her in any danger. Nessie will just have to hide out whenever Renee comes by. Sorry kid."

Jake and Nessie had made their way over to the living room and sat on the floor next to the sofa, but I wasn't paying to much attention to that. I was too busy willing Alice's plan to work out in my head. Any way the situation ran through my mind there were always holes and my thoughts immediately jumped to worst case scenarios.

"Alice, Renee isn't blind. She'll see the differences, not just in appearance but also my movements. My voice isn't exactly the same either. Unfortunately Renee is the observant parent and I don't think she'll go along with Charlie's need-to-know basis." The pessimist in me wanted to shout at Alice for getting my hopes up with such a fallible plan. However, it was optimism that kept me quiet and grasping at the delicate strings of hope.

"Do you honestly believe that I hadn't thought this through? For your appearance, well, I happen to be a fabulous make-up artist. I'm sure I could make you presentable enough. I have a feeling that Renee is going to be a little too distracted to scrutinize your appearance too much. That will also apply to your movements, but just to be safe you may want to stay seated for most of the visit. Of course you're going to greet her at the door; you can even trip if you want to. After that tell her that you're tired from your trip and sit on the couch. Your voice shouldn't be a big deal, but if you're really worried you can try and rough it up a bit." Alice smiled and danced over to where I was sitting to wrap her arms around my shoulders.

"Really, Bella, from what I can see everything should go without cause for concern. You have nothing to worry about." She turned to Carlisle now, "What do you think? Any suggestions?"

Carlisle pushed off of the couch and stared at nothing, his eyes were narrowed in thought. "I trust in your visions, Alice. If you don't see any complications, I have nothing further to add." A warm smile spread across his face showing absolute trust in her visions.

Alice jumped up clapping her hands in excitement, "This is going to be fun. I've never gotten a chance to use all this make-up before." She paused thoughtful and the corners of her mouth turned down. "I've had it all for so long it's probably gotten lumpy . . . Shopping trip!"

As if he _could_ read my thoughts, Edward grabbed my shoulders and held me to my seat so I couldn't make my escape. I glared up at him from over my shoulder; he smirked.

"Bella," Alice called, "since I'm making up your face, you need to come with me."

"Seriously Alice, with everything that is going on you're really that concerned with shopping?" I couldn't believe she'd let herself get so distracted at a time like this.

"Relax; this is exactly what you need. You need something to take your mind off of all this. Your mom won't be here for another few days; we have the plan, and there's nothing we can do until then."

I sighed and nodded my head reluctantly. "Fine I'll go, but only if we can get it over with today."

"Oh thank you Bella; I knew you wouldn't let me down." Alice leaned back over the arm of the couch and kissed me on the cheek. "I'm going to go change. I'll meet you by my Porsche in a second."

I let my head fall back against the couch. "I guess I should get ready." My head rolled to the side and I kissed Edward's hand as it was still on my shoulder.

"I know Alice doesn't always work in the most conventional ways, but I've seen her mind and she knows what she's doing. Everything _will_ work out," Edward assured me. He kissed my forehead and pushed me up off of the couch.

I trudged into the garage and leaned against Alice's car. Glaring at the yellow paint I waited for Alice to drag me away.

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A/N: Ok so finally the next chapter. Yeah it's kind of short, but I really couldn't make it much longer without going into the next chapter. I'm really sorry this took so long I can't say that enough. I'm just so busy. Like I'm finishing this chapter up in my hotel room and I spent a lot of my plane ride this morning working on it as well. Each week this month I will be in a different state. So the business won't end until August, but I will try my best to get these chapters out. Thanks to all of you who have waited so patiently. Please Review and tell me what you think and any ideas you may have. **_

_**THANK YOU! **_


	3. Distractions

_**A/N: Maybe it's because it took me so long, but the reviews were kind of slacking. I know that more than seven people read the last chapter, but that's how many reviews I got. Really, I am sorry about the late updates, but with travel and all the craziness of trying to get into college I haven't had much time. Also I've been stuck in California where internet costs 13 dollars a day. So needless to say I didn't pay for it. Well here it is now, enjoy. **_

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BPOV:

I slid my hand across the glossy yellow paint of Alice's Porsche. Her lithe footsteps echoed off the walls as she skipped down the stairs. My stomach twisted in apprehension as it does every time I had to go on one of Alice's ridiculous shopping excursions. There were also those persistent little remnants of worry that remained lodged in the back of my mind about Renee.

"What are you waiting for," Alice asked. I shook my head and spun around to find Alice sitting in the driver's seat waiting.

"I must have gotten distracted," I mumbled to myself as I slid into my seat.

Alice shook her head and revved the engine. She sighed with relaxation as the car purred haughtily. We whipped around the narrow curves along the drive and burst through the trees onto the main road. "We're going to Seattle," Alice said as we raced away from Forks. I tuned her out from that point on.

It seemed like the farther away from the house we drove the more Jasper's control over my emotions faded until it was all but nonexistent. My doubts and concerns crept into the forefront of my mind growing in numbers and strength until they consumed my thoughts.

"Bella!" I jolted back to reality shaking my head clear. Alice pouted at being ignored, she probably also didn't like that I just stared back at her in bewilderment. "Ugh I asked you a question," she finally resolved to tell me. Silence. I continued to stare. "Never mind we're here."

Alice slammed her door shut and appeared at mine before I had even moved to reach for the handle. I wondered about the condition of door for half a second; she'd slam it closed pretty hard.

"Bella please don't be like this today. I hate when you get all spacey; it's no fun." Alice grabbed my wrist and pulled me through the entrance of the mall like a rag doll. Our first stops were all the major department stores.

Of course, with Alice, shopping is never as simple as it sounds. We came for makeup, but it was inevitable that Alice would get distracted, and somehow we ended up wandering away from makeup altogether.

"Come on Bella, Burberry is having a sale on scarves," Alice urged after throwing yet another shopping bag into my arms, this one contained her fourth pair of Gucci sunglasses.

"Alice I really don't want to lug anymore of your bags around," I finally protested.

"Why, are you tired? Besides, my arms are already full."

"No I'm not tired, you know that, but aren't we here to get makeup for when Renee comes?"

"Yes, we'll get to that. I just haven't found anything that I like yet, so stop your complaining. You should actually be thanking me." I raised an eyebrow incredulously. "Remember when we went into Victoria's Secret? Well not all of that was for me if you catch my drift. Oh and there were those two dresses and that adorable raincoat I got for you. . ."

I sighed and trudged along behind Alice as she continued to prattle on about all the 'fabulous' things she'd purchased so far today.

"Here try this on." Alice threw a plaid, awkwardly frilled hat at me. "Oh and these too." Large florescent pink glasses and a beaded purple scarf flew in my direction. I eyed these items with disbelief.

"What. . . Alice I. . . Why?"

"Does it really matter Bella? Just do it," Alice insisted pointing back towards the dressing rooms. Shrugging my shoulders I dropped the shopping bags and slumped down the bright, mirrored hall. Once I'd donned the ridiculous articles I spun around in the 360 degree mirror to get a good look at myself; I looked like a circus act.

"Don't even try to put up a fight Bella. Get out here, and don't change out of anything." Alice's voice rang from the front of the store. Annoying little psychic.

I shuffled my feet along the glossy floor, prolonging the embarrassment as much as I could. Eventually, I did make it to the end of the hallway. Alice was no where to be founded; heavily stocked shelves were all that could be seen, but I could hear her. I could hear the soft rustling of silk against skin and the melodic clinking of beads accompanied by light, nimble footsteps that could only be hers.

"Oh don't you look fabulous!" Alice appeared from behind one of the racks beaming. She had raided the shelves for obnoxious items for herself as well. Her arms were sheathed in elbow length turquoise gloves and she wore several strands of gaudy beads in every color from around her neck. She was also wearing a sad excuse for a pair of sunglasses. These things were over-sized cat eye glasses with thick neon purple frames that covered the majority of her face. As she turned her head I could see that the sides had been bedazzled to the extreme with flashy gold sequins.

"Alice, you've lost your mind." I could think of no other explanation for her behavior.

She arched her eyebrow high enough that it was almost visible above the frames. I know I've never been in the fashion loop, but I was certain that none of this had some into style.

"Really, Bella, I think we look marvelous." Alice spun around in front of the mirror and struck a few quick poses before turning her attention back to me. "I brought my camera, we have to take some beauty shots," she insisted as she rifled through her purse.

Once Alice found the camera she skipped over to my side and pulled me up tight against her while holding her camera out in front. "Smile, Bella," she mumbled through her smiling teeth. She waited a second, "You're not smiling I can see you in my periphery. The sooner you smile the sooner the camera goes away."

I thought that over and sighed. Fighting through my misery and embarrassment I was actually able to capture a decent photo. I pushed away from Alice in hopes of getting out of these ridiculous clothes, but she had other ideas.

"Come on, now we have to take some fun ones." Alice reached out and grasped my arm so tightly that is would have cut off the circulation of any human. Five shots and two glares later I was finally able to break free so I could rid myself of the cluttered accessories.

I placed the hat back on the shelf and spun around to find Alice behind me with a cherub's smile, innocent and exquisite. "Honestly Alice, I can't figure out what in the world you were thinking," I finally blurted out.

Alice just shrugged her shoulders, "I thought it would be fun, and it was. I got some great pictures.

Shaking my head in disbelief I bent down to pick up Alice's many shopping bags. "Really, we did all that just because you thought it might be fun?" Sigh. I stood up to look at her, "I just don't get you sometimes Alice, I really don't"

A coy little smile crept to the corners of her lips like she was in on the most exciting secret in the world and I wasn't. She cleared her throat to try and hide the smile. "Let me just ask you this, when was the last time you thought about Renee?"

My eyes widened and my mouth dropped open to form a little 'o' as I thought about that. As if she could hear my thoughts Alice folded her arms across her chest and nodded her head knowingly.

"So there is a method to my madness," she said smugly.

For the first time that afternoon a genuine smile crept across my face without me having to will it there. Alice jumped up and clapped her hands before wrapping her arms around me.

"Finally my Bella is back." It was then that I realized how much worry I had caused Alice. She'd been hiding it all morning, focusing solely on buying. I felt horrible for hurting her so much. It seems errant to even cause someone like Alice any pain even in the slightest. I returned her hug.

Alice gave me one last quick squeeze before releasing me from her grasp. "Now," she said backing away from me and picking up her bags, "we really need to get you to the makeup counters so we can get home soon. You must be exhausted." With that she turned on her heels and headed towards the main mall area.

I didn't move. Standing in front of the mirrors I chewed on my bottom lip as I thought over my options. I wanted to do something for Alice since she goes through so much for me, but what?

It didn't take Alice long to realize that I hadn't followed behind her. "Bella, what are you thinking?" Her mind must be flashing with indecipherable images at my indecision.

I shifted my weight from one foot and then the other to keep up the human façade. My shoes whined against the damp linoleum floor. Looking down at my worn flats the idea finally came to me.

I threw my head up to find Alice's blank stare. It only lasted a fraction of a second until her expression drastically changed to one of repressed excitement. She was trying to be polite and not ruin the surprise anymore than was inevitable.

"Alice?" She nodded her head with exuberance as she bit her lower lip. "My shoes are getting a little worn. Would you like to help me pick out some new ones?"

She took a deep breath before speaking. "Of course I would, Bella. It would be my pleasure." Alice managed to keep her voice even, but she was betrayed by her smile.

She looked down at the bags still in her hands and the corners of her mouth dropped and crease formed between her eyebrows. "If we're going to go shoe shopping all these bags need to be put in the car." She gave a short little nod for her own affirmation before heading back toward the exit.

We walked at a brisk pace not even glancing at the many shops we passed by; Alice was on a mission now.

Actually getting the bags into the trunk of her Porsche was easier said than done. We moved as fast as was partially acceptable and it still took us a good five to seven minutes.

"Ok, so first we'll need to get rid of all the unnecessary hangers," Alice instructed. Once we had a pile of about thirty Alice decided that we should have gotten a trashcan before we just threw the hangers all over the place, and by we she meant I.

"It would have been nice to know this earlier," I mumbled as I grabbed the nearest garbage bin, "It's not like you've never been shopping before."

I got back to the car and threw the large steel can at Alice. She catches it with one hand and sets it down in front of the growing pile of hangers before looks up to glare at me. "You're lucky no was in here," she scolds, "Really Bella an average sized male would not have been able to pick that up. You need to be more careful."

I shrug my shoulders and mumble an apology. I bent down to load the hangers into the trashcan and hoped that I could hide the embarrassment that I'm sure was clear on my face. Sometimes I forget that I'm not 'normal' anymore.

"Alright, now we need to combine bags, but make sure that the clothes are folded. They fit better that way." I sighed and kicked the overflowing trash bin against the wall in between the two cars opposite us. It came to a halt with a resounding thud that was oddly satisfying.

Alice's eyes darted up to me and then to the can some thirty feet away. Unfortunately she seemed to zone in on the foot sized dent in the side of it. She dropped her head into the palms of her hands, "Maybe we should just keep you locked up. I'll take Nessie shopping with me next time."

"What," I asked incredulously, "No one was there to see anything. I checked." Although I didn't mind the idea of not having to join Alice on all her shopping excursions, I didn't want to take the chance of getting put under house arrest because I had full confidence that she could make that happen were she so inclined to.

She just rolled her eyes and went back to her bag sorting. Sighing I picked up some of the bags and started to combine their contents.

"No, no, no," Alice reprimanded with wide eyes. She slapped my hand and grabbed the bags. "You can't put an evening gown in the same bag as blues jeans. It doesn't go." She spoke like she was scolding a child for sticking her fingers into an electrical socket – common sense stuff.

Dropping the remaining bags I decided to let Alice sort out the rest her bags. Instead I leaned back against her car and surveyed the others in the garage. In the far corner was a red Chevy pick-up truck that I eyed enviously. Although it wasn't as old mine – it was probably manufactured sometime in the late seventies or early eighties – it still brought back sharp pangs of nostalgia.

A soft click from behind snapped me out of my truck induced fantasies. I spun around to discover that it was only the sound of the locking trunk that caught my attention.

"Alright, let's go get some shoes," Alice announced grabbing my hand and pulling me back into the mall.

The first store we stopped in was a small high-fashion boutique. The walls were lined with heels of every color and design. Most were metallic and every pair had some type of sparkly embellishment somewhere on it.

I almost told Alice that this wasn't what I had in mind, but then I saw her face. Her eyes lit up with childlike wonder as the skillfully placed spotlights reflected off of the shoes. Glitter refractions danced across the walls and ceiling giving the whole store a Cave of Wonders feel.

"Buongiorno, how may I help you ladies," a warm, Italian accented voice asked. I pulled my eyes away from the lights show to see a man stepping from behind the back curtain.

He ran a hand through his slick black hair and smiled what he hoped to be seductively at us. His peculiarly strait, white teeth contrasted strongly against his beach tanned skin. His eyes scrutinized our appearances with growing excitement. Taking a deep breath to try and control his accelerated heart rate the buttons on his shirt nearly burst from the strain seeing as the shirt was unusually tight to show off his sculpted chest muscles.

"My name is Mario, is there _anything_ I can get you ladies?" The implications were so blatant I almost laughed.

Alice put her hands behind her back as if browsing and slyly removed her wedding ring. I shot her an incredulous look, but she smiled playfully and winked before eyeing my ring. I sighed and copied her gestures. All of that happened too quickly for Mario to understand, but I had a feeling that he was a little too preoccupied to pay that much attention.

"Mario," Alice called, "could I try those in a size six and a half?" She pointed purposefully with her left hand at a pair of strappy black heels.

Mario unwillingly pulled his gaze away from our bodies and up to Alice's face. "Of course . . ." he started. His eyes slid down Alice's slender arm and paused at her fingers – her ring finger to be exact – when a confident smile crept to the corners of his lips. "It would be my pleasure."

As he disappeared into the back room again Alice turned to me, her face was lit up with excitement. "I love messing with humans. This is going to be so much fun!"

Mario returned with Alice's shoe and offered her one of the many cushioned chairs to sit in. She sat timidly as if flattered by his attempts at chivalry and pulled up the bottom of her pant leg. Mario ogled at the small amount of pale skin that was revealed before even opening the shoe box.

He pulled out one of the shoes as if it was made of glass. Alice pointed her toe as Mario slipped on the stiletto. As he fumbled with the top straps his hand came into contact with Alice's skin, and, as if he had been shocked, he pulled his hand away and almost fell over backwards from his squat.

"Is something wrong," Alice asked offended.

"No, signora, everything is fine. It's just . . . well your skin is so cold. It caught me off guard."

Alice looked up at the ceiling speculatively. "Yes, it is a bit drafty in here. Don't you agree Bella?"

Mario's head snapped up and his gaze fell upon me at the mention of my Italian name. I just shrugged my shoulders and decided to play along. "Yes it is a rather cold in here." I placed my hands against my face and shivered. "My hands are so cold. Feel." This time I reached out and placed my hand on Mario's arm. He shivered as well, but I don't think it had to do entirely with the cold.

"Sì, signora, very cold indeed."

The rest of our time in the store with Mario continued in the same fashion. We stopped at a few other shoe stores before finally getting to the makeup. With Alice's expertise we didn't spend too much time there before we were able to head back out to the car. With our new bags piled up in the backseat the car ride home was slightly Closter phobic.

"Edward's not going to be happy about Mario," I commented sliding my wedding ring back into place.

"What he doesn't know won't hurt him," Alice replied raising an eyebrow.

"Oh I wasn't planning on tell him. It's you I'm worried about."

"Ugh, I think I've just been insulted," Alice said with an appalled look clear on her face.

I shrugged my shoulders, "I'm just saying that not all of us can keep our thoughts to ourselves." Alice couldn't think of a retort to that so instead she stuck her tongue out at me. I couldn't help but to laugh.

Silence prevailed in the car until we pulled up to the house. I got out and headed towards the trunk to start unloading everything we'd purchased today. I looked back at Alice to see if she planned to help, but she shook her head and held up a finger for me to wait.

"Wow, Bella, we bought so many things today. I wish we had someone out here to help us carry all of this in," Alice said conversationally.

Within a millisecond Jasper appeared at the door ready to do whatever Alice wished. A small point of the finger was all it took for Jasper to load up his arms with as many shopping bags as he could, leaving Alice and me with only three small ones.

"It's good to see you are in a better mood, love. How was shopping?" Edward met me at the door and pulled me into his arms.

I looked up at him and smiled, "Meraviglioso." Peeking over Edward's shoulder I could see Alice stifle a laugh.

Edward raised an eyebrow, "You know Italian now? What, did Alice take you shopping in Europe?"

_**

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A/N: Well there you have it, Bella's shopping trip with Alice. It's a little longer than the last two so I hope that makes up for it being late. I'm going to apologize ahead of time for next chapter. With school starting up again in less than a month I really need to get cracking on all of my summer assignments. As consequence, the next chapter may take awhile. **_

_**With that being said I hope you liked this chapter. Please leave a review to tell me what you think and to share any ideas about what should happen next with me.**_

_**THANK YOU!**_


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